Presentation from the Florida Kiwanis District Convention on adapting the traditional Kiwanis club structure to focus more on service, and less on meetings. By increasing flexibility and expanding club satellites, Kiwanis can maintain its traditions, while becoming more attractive to a new generation of community volunteers.

1. Innovative Membership
Concepts
Presented by C. Todd Smith
Florida District Membership Chair, 2013-14
You can never cross the ocean until you have
the courage to lose sight of the shore. –
Christopher Columbus

2. Take something you love
Share it with others
Make it a part of your life

3. STAY FLEXIBILE
Focus Less on Meetings, More on Service
If you’re not ready to
change…
then you’re not ready for
new members.

4. Flexible Options:
Club Satellites
Corporate
Memberships
3-2-1 Clubs

5. Most people don’t want
more meetings in their life

6. # 1 IMPEDIMENT TO GROWTH
Inflexible or too
rooted in tradition-
Refusal to change
even if it means your
club is failing.

7. A satellite club can help in
the following situations:
• A group of potential or current members wishes to
meet at a different day, time and/or location than
the established club.
• A group wishes to engage in a service project that
benefits a particular community or demographic
segment.
• A group of members wishes to serve a particular
geographic area.
• Club members wish to create a different meeting
format or schedule, or hold meetings online.

8. Examples of when a
satellite club can help:
PROBLEM: Based upon your current meeting
schedule (especially lunch clubs) you are excluding
potential members including, teachers or advisors of
your SLP clubs, young professionals and employees
who don’t have a flexible work schedule.
SOLUTION: Form a satellite club with a group of
potential or current members who want to meet at a
different day, time and/or location than the
established club.

9. PROBLEM: Current culture of the
club refuses to change format of
meetings or still wants to do things
“the way we’ve always done them”
and refuses to change.
SOLUTION: Form a satellite club with a group of
potential or current members who want to conduct
meetings in a different way, less frequently, or
participate in completely different types of service
projects.

10. Case Study
The Kiwanis Club of It’s Always Been This Way:
• Meets every week for lunch, and has had to
increase dues to keep up with meal costs.
• Doesn’t do a lot of hands on service because
not enough members to volunteer.
• Hard to attract younger members because
most everyone in the club is a senior citizen
• Losing members because everyone is tired

11. LOOK FORWARD
(the future is not behind you)

12. Club Satellites
What about…
Young professionals
Employees of company or hospital
Business networking group
Parents of SLP members
Former Key Club members
Church group
Dinner club
Bowling league
Motorcycle club
Classic Car Club
Division Satellite Club ???

13. The
benefits
of a
satellite
club to
younger
members
What do younger
members want?
• More service
• Lowers Dues
• Less Meetings
• Hands-On Service
Opportunities
• Social Activities
• Communication
through social media
(not email)

14. Recruiting a Key Clubber?
Contact is KEY!
• Be involved and have a relationship with the
Key Club or CKI club
• Attend last meeting of the year, host an end of
year party, OR host a event to talk about
continuing their K family involvement at the
next level
• Start a Club Satellite for former Key Club
Members in your area

15. Host - Satellite Discussion Points
Purpose. Clearly define the reason or reasons for establishing
the satellite.
Membership. Decide if the host club should establish a
minimum number of members for the satellite and what should
happen if its membership falls below that level.
Meetings. When and where will the satellite meet?
Operations. Designate someone as the satellite’s host club
liaison. Determine if the satellite will exist as a committee of the
host club.
Oversight. Determine what level of oversight is comfortable for
both groups.

16. Problems to Avoid
Issues over money or fundraising
Lack of communication between the host
club and the satellite club
Failure to allow representation on the
board of directors of the host club
Lack of collaboration between the host
club and the satellite club

19. C. Todd Smith
Email:
todd@yourPIattorney.com
facebook.com/ctodds
ctoddsmith.com
407-841-8294